The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to extend a September 1 deadline requiring oil refiners to demonstrate compliance with the nation's biofuel blending laws, the agency said in a notice seen by Reuters on Friday, a move that could help the industry reduce the elevated cost of compliance.
The agency did not give additional details on the new deadline, but said it would be included in an upcoming formal action.
The EPA confirmed the notice and said in an email it "recognizes the importance of the RFS program and is committed to maintaining certainty and stability."
Under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), a federal program aimed at increasing renewable fuel usage, refiners were required to show they had met their 2025 biofuel blending mandates by September 1, either by generating Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) through blending biofuels into the nation's fuel supply or by purchasing those credits from other market participants.
An extension would give refiners more time to meet their obligations and could help them manage high RIN prices, which have raised compliance costs for some companies.
The multibillion-dollar RIN market is a key component of the biofuel program and a major source of uncertainty for refiners. For years, farmers, ethanol makers and green fuel proponents have been pushing for higher blending quotas, while small refiners have resisted the push.
Reuters reported in late July that the EPA was weighing such an extension.
The agency on Friday also said it intends to issue decisions on all pending requests from smaller refiners seeking waivers from their obligations by the end of August, an issue that has put the White House in the middle of a fight between refiners and biofuel producers. Those decisions also had a deadline of September 1.
Smaller refiners have sought waivers from their 2025 obligations, arguing that compliance costs have become too burdensome, as RIN prices have risen to record levels and the EPA has imposed more aggressive biofuel blending requirements.
